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The Respiratory Muscles in Health and Disease

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Pulmonary Biology in Health and Disease

Abstract

The mechanical action of any skeletal muscle is essentially determined by the anatomy of the muscle and by the structures it has to displace when it contracts. The respiratory muscles are structurally and functionally skeletal muscles, and their vital task is to displace the chest wall rhythmically to pump gas in and out of the lungs. This chapter therefore starts with a discussion of the basic mechanical structure of the chest wall. It next analyzes the actions of the muscles that displace the chest wall. For the sake of clarity, the functions of the diaphragm, the muscles of the rib cage, and the muscles of the abdominal wall will be analyzed sequentially; however, because all these muscles normally work together in a coordinated manner, the most critical aspects of their mechanical interactions are also emphasized. Finally, some disorders are considered in which the respiratory displacements of the chest wall are abnormal due to a particular distribution of muscle weakness or chronic hyperinflation.

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Authors
  1. André De Troyer
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiology, University of Wisconsin Medical School, Madison, WI, 53706, USA

    E. Edward Bittar MD

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De Troyer, A. (2002). The Respiratory Muscles in Health and Disease. In: Bittar, E.E. (eds) Pulmonary Biology in Health and Disease. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-22435-0_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-22435-0_8

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